Lip Man 1

And if the Dodgers keeping making the playoffs in the short term, maybe win another World Series or two, they won't care in the least if he blows out his arm in five years. To make money you have to spend it and spent it smartly which is something the Dodgers do well and the White Sox don't. JR very rarely is willing to gamble or step out of his comfort zone which is one of the many reasons this franchise is in the state that it is in.

There's a lot of truth in this bolded comment. And I'm glad he didn't sign with the Yankees myself, I have no animosity towards the Dodgers because as you point out they are a complete, top-notch organization in all levels and facets. The antithesis of the White Sox in every aspect.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/breaking/ct-mlb-pitch-clock-rule-changes-20231222-4ok5wxyz2randbzh72etbbfgv4-story.html

Didn't know this book came out in 2015. It's basically the follow up to The Lords of the Realm by John Helyar. Sox Machine's Jim Magalus as part of a story today has some fascinating material from it focusing on the Sox signing of Albert Belle and MLB's reaction to it. https://soxmachine.com/2023/12/following-up-white-sox-announce-event-that-isnt-soxfest/ The MLB owners were so angry at JR after it that they removed him from the committee that advised the commissioner on labor matters. Many felt that JR signed Belle for one reason only, to pay the other owners back for ending the labor dispute on terms that JR didn't like.

https://awfulannouncing.com/mlb/diamond-bally-sports-mlb-2024-rights-fees.html

December 20, 1958 - Bill Veeck got a court ruling in his favor which allowed him and his group to get majority control of the White Sox. Members of the Comiskey family went to court in an effort to stop the sale of the franchise. There would be more court rulings before the sale was made final in March 1959.

Glad retirement is going well for you.

Just wondering where are all the videos on Eloy's comedic attempts at playing the outfield or running the bases (where he gets hurt?) ?

I'd like to know what SSHM does for a living and how he can expend all this time and energy on daily multiple posts like the one above.

No, an expansion team potentially led by Dave Stewart and yes...Tony LaRussa.

He did in 1982... it bounced off the bill of his cap and led to an inside the park home run by the Red Sox. It was Dave Stapleton, I think who hit it.

Bob certainly did a very good job in his role for 30 years, he retired two years ago. He was also a high school and college basketball ref in the off season.

They aren't going anyplace: https://www.mlb.com/news/orioles-agree-to-30-year-deal-to-remain-at-camden-yards

In 2011 Dunn only hit 11 home runs with 42 RBI’s and had a batting average of .159. It was literally one of the worst seasons in 100 years of MLB according to the metrics and stats.

I'll only comment on Fisk. He played from 1981 through 1993 with the Sox...how many years did you expect him to play? 25? He was treated very badly by JR and the organization but honestly as a player he was done.

I'm not comparing anyone to him you are... one can make the case that all of the individuals being discussed have major flaws and issues which are hurting the organization. But given the organization itself, that shouldn't be a surprise to anybody should it?

All I can tell you, is others have told me, including those in the organization, that his attitude actually drove away businesses interested in the Sox. And given that the Sox are a public trust and rely a lot on fan interest and businesses it's a strange response from you saying that those in charge shouldn't be "nice." I'd think especially for someone like Gallas, who's job was public and media relations to a great extent, that one of the requirements would be to be personable and professional.

From MLB.com today: Dylan Cease, White Sox The most likely of this group to be moved, Cease has already drawn interest from several teams, and sources say they expect the White Sox to move their ace this offseason. Unlike Burnes (and Shane Bieber, who we’ll get to shortly), Cease is under club control for two more seasons, making him a more attractive – and costly – trade option. Chicago surely noted that the Dodgers gave up a former Top 100 prospect in righty Ryan Pepiot and young slugging outfielder Jonny DeLuca in exchange for Glasnow and veteran outfielder Manuel Margot, though that deal was contingent upon Glasnow agreeing to an extension. Two years of Cease should bring back a nice return for the White Sox. Cease is coming off of a subpar year by his standards, as he went 7-9 with a 4.58 ERA in 33 starts (177 innings). But he’s been healthy and averaged 176 innings per season since 2021, something appealing to teams around the league. Of course, the Yamamoto suitors aren’t the only ones trying to trade for rotation help. Smaller-market teams such as the Reds and Orioles are looking to add starting pitching and have the prospect capital to make such a deal, but the White Sox aren’t likely to move Cease until Yamamoto (and possibly Blake Snell) are off the market.

I respectfully disagree, my interactions with Gallas and from what I was told by others was that he was taciturn, gruff and insulted people and businesses left and right. He fit right in with JR. As far as the iconic uniforms that was the doing of Jeff Torborg who told me of a conversation he directly had with JR about them. He said he told JR the only team that could wear the iconic "Dodger-script" style uniforms (a la 1986-1990) were the Dodgers themselves and the Sox had to change. Jeff said JR told him, "Well I designed those..." It was an awkward moment to say the least. But Torborg convinced him the pin stripe uniform and the Old English Sox logo on the front were identified by the fan base from the good days (1951-1963) so the change was finally made.

The only way this franchise doesn't cede this season is if every other team in the division/league forfeits. That's not going to happen and the Sox aren't going to be anywhere close to worth a damn in 2024 whether Eloy is around or not. If a good offer comes along ship his lazy, injury-prone ass out the door.

December 17, 1914 - Clarence “Pants” Rowland was named White Sox manager. He was an unknown who never managed above Class B and never won anything but would guide the club to a 100-win season, the most ever by the franchise, and the World Series title in 1917. December 17, 1975 - Under new owner Bill Veeck, the Sox went retro with the naming of former manager Paul Richards to become the new field manager replacing Chuck Tanner. Richards was the man who turned around the franchise in 1951. He was one of the smartest baseball men in the game, but it had been 15 years since he was involved in the day-to-day operations of a franchise. Apparently, he didn’t even really want the job, agreeing to do it only as a favor to Veeck. He would last one season. Years later Tanner would reveal that Richards asked him to stay on as his third base coach with the promise of getting the manager’s job again in 1977 but Tanner instead took a three year offer from the A’s. December 17, 2004 - The Sox claimed pitcher Bobby Jenks on waivers from the Angels. Jenks had a reputation as a reckless individual who wanted to party more than play baseball. Somehow the Sox found a way to reach him and he proved a God-send down the stretch in 2005 with six saves, then added four more saves in the run to the World Series title. He then followed it up with 41 saves in 2006, 40 in 2007 and turned into one of the top closers in the game by 2008. He had 173 saves in his White Sox career.

Interesting column: https://soxmachine.com/2023/12/the-white-sox-need-a-soxfest-more-than-fans-need-a-soxfest/

Who made any comparison about why they won? I certainly didn't. Pitching played a very large part in the success...but so did an offense that didn't need three home runs a game to win. Say the word...balance...pitching, hitting, fielding AND some actually baseball smarts and knowledge of fundamentals.

Hard to imagine given JR's constraints that things are going to get much better on the talent front.

They had the best balanced offense I could remember...among the top quarter of the league in home runs, stolen bases, sacrifice bunts, infield hits and sacrifice flies. They could beat you with a blast, a bloop or a bunt.